Cable or rope hoists comprise a cable drum to which one end of a traction cable is fastened. A gear motor is used to selectively rotate the cable drum in one or the other direction. The gear motor comprises a gearing mechanism as well as art asynchronous or a synchronous motor. Permanently excited direct current motors may also be used.
For safety reasons, a brake is also assigned to the cable drum, whereby the brake is to become enabled whenever a malfunction occurs in the drive train between the motor and the gearing mechanism. Such a malfunction may be, for example, the occurrence of a brake failure in the drive or a power failure in the motor. Synchronous and asynchronous motors do not have their own detent torque.